Word: allen
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...thought of himself as their kinsman: an improv artist with words. But he gained a large following, even though his material, even in his early prime, was deemed too controversial for TV. (Remember, there were only three networks and some independent stations. And this was the 50s. Only Steve Allen, an early and loyal fan, booked Lenny on his shows as early as 1959 and as late as 1964.) But as a nightclub and concert performer, he was king, earning more than $100,000 a year, and attracting a sizable clique who came to hear Lenny talk about ... anything...
...There were lots of differences, too. Lenny (first name only, please: it's no easier to refer to Lenny as "Bruce" than it is to call Woody "Allen") enjoyed nothing like Elvis' celebrity, though the prototype "sick comic" had a unique notoriety. His corrosive comedy routines, and the occasionally raw language he used to make his satirical points, landed him in the docket on obscenity charges in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and San Francisco. "Factually, the show is indecent," he acknowledged. "The areas that I discuss are not pleasant. However, I do think they have the freight of substance...
PLEADED GUILTY. Claude Allen, 45, former Bush White House domestic-policy adviser, in a plea agreement, to one misdemeanor count of theft for defrauding Target stores by stealing items and then attempting to get refunds for them; in Rockville, Md. Allen last week ascribed his behavior to job stress and sleep deprivation in dealing with the fallout from Hurricane Katrina...
That leaves comedy, and here the movie fails utterly. Lately, Allen's gags have been small, sad efforts, not the gut-grabbing, head-hurting zingers of his youth. Maybe fate grants any man only a certain number of great jokes, and Allen, 70, exhausted his allotment long ago. Yet he remains addicted to the form well after losing the aptitude...
...this late stage in a long career, Allen might consider not trying to make films like the early, funny ones. Instead he should aim simply to match Match Point...